Marked growth in consumer confidence this festive season; Consumer to spend 40% more this Diwali: ASSOCHAM Survey

Riding on the back of an uptick in the economy and improving perception for better job prospects, coupled with steady lowering of interest rates, the consumer demand is witnessing a marked growth of as much 40 per cent in the ongoing festival season this year, as compared to 2015, an ASSOCHAM survey has said.

Notably, rural demand is adding to the festive fervour, as good Monsoon has boosted confidence among the farmers and farm labour. Clear pick up is visible in the sale of two-wheelers, jewellery and even consumer durables in the rural and semi-rural areas in most parts of the country. However, as noted in earlier ASSOCHAM survey, the demand for real estate and housing remains very low key.

The uptick in demand is seen clearly in the sale of automobiles including passenger cars, two-wheelers, mobile handsets, consumer durables and fashion -wears. So far, the maximum push is seen in the eastern and western region while the northern region is expected to pick up in the run-up to Diwali, reveals the ASSOCHAM survey.

Kolkata and other major cities in the east have witnessed a splurge on Durga Puja shopping while the western cities of Maharashtra and Gujarat have seen good rush of shoppers during the Navratris. Delhi and other north Indian cities would pick up pace in the next few days in jewellery buying, apart from consumer durables.

According to the survey, about 20 per cent increase in spend on groceries; a 52 per cent increase in budget apparels, about 32 percent spend on lifestyle and fashion accessories in the next three months would mark the festive season, the survey noted.

"Green shoots in the economy are giving a lot of confidence to consumer demand, which hopefully would lead to an appetite for fresh investment after a brief lag," said ASSOCHAM Secretary General Mr D S Rawat .

The survey covered consumers in age groups 24-34 and 35-45 in Delhi-NCR, Mumbai, Kolkata, Bangalore, Chennai, Ahmedabad, Chandigarh, Lucknow and Indore.

The survey reveals that women are likely to spend more on apparel than men, while men tend to spend more on lifestyle accessories than women.

The average amount spend on mobiles during the festive season is expected to range from Rs 15,000- 35,500, up from Rs 10,000 - 15,000 for the last six months. In case of mobile phones and other electronics, consumers will re-look into various brands and their offerings especially, in terms of the value proposition before making the purchase decision.

The average ticket size for home appliances and electronics during the festive season is expected to be Rs 15,000-25,000/- six months ago.

The middle and upper middle class spend around Rs 10,000 to Rs 25,000 in the festive season. Mostly they buy electronic items like mobiles, laptops or LED TVs.

Metro consumers are increasing taking to online shopping as top e-commerce companies discounts, freebies and offers to boost sales. Online retailers such as Amazon, Paytm, Jabong, ShopClues, Snapdeal, Flipkart and Quikr are doling out hefty discounts apart from cash-back offers and loyalty points.

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